Tax season in full swing after delay; Genesee County preparers say they are busy

The H&R Block located downtown Flint said it's seeing steady business following the IRS's delayed filing statues this year.Jeremy Allen | jallen42@mlive.com

GENESEE COUNTY, MI -- Good things won't necessarily come to those who've waited to file their tax returns this year. The IRS estimates tax refunds will be delayed this season.

A number of Flint-area tax preparers said the delayed start of the tax
season has caused an influx in business, even more so than the normal
opening.

After the Internal Revenue Service pushed back the opening date for tax season from Jan. 22 to Jan. 30, Wednesday officially marked the first day people could file their income tax returns.

In addition to the delayed start of the tax-filing season, the IRS is estimating 21 days for electronically filed refunds to be deposited into filers' accounts, while mailed refunds could take a month or more. Last year, the IRS estimated that returns would be deposited between eight and 15 days.

Amanda Marks, the office manager at the H&R Block on East Second Street in downtown Flint, said that her store was been busy for the better part of Jan. 30 and Jan. 31.

"We've been doing great and we've had lots of people come in here," Marks said. "There are some differences in the credits and things people are eligible for this year, so not only did people have to wait a little longer, but some people won't be getting as much back as they have in previous years."

Tiffany Atkin, the manager of Liberty Tax Services in Clio, said that part of the reason for the smaller returns is the elimination of some state tax credits.

"Michigan has seen some decreases in returns due to the Earned Income Tax Credit that got decreased," Atkin said. "For the most part, federal returns have been about the same."

Atkin said that as a way to combat the 21-day waiting period for people to get their refunds, Liberty Tax Services offers instant loans.

"I'm seeing that, with the IRS being under delay, a lot of people apply for the same-day loans and turnaround for that is usually 24-48 hours for people to get approved."

Diversified Tax Services is a locally owed tax preparer run by Sharon Withey. Withey, who has been a tax preparer for 25 years with H&R Block and her own company, said that she does close to 550 people's taxes annually.

"It's not been as busy for me as I thought it would be," she said. "We've been steady, but we haven't had the rush like we thought we'd have, especially with the filing day pushed back to Jan. 30."

Marks and Atkin each said that the next two weeks and the final week leading up to the close of tax season -- April 15 -- are known as "ultra peak weeks" for tax preparers.

John Barancik, a Mt. Morris resident, said that the delayed return pushed back a lot of his plans to pay off some debt.

"I was expecting to be able to file my taxes early in January," Barancik said. I'm sure there's a lot of people who depend on getting their tax returns back by a certain date and this is going to push things back for them. I don't expect it to affect me as much as it will other people, but I'm sure other people will be affected."